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As the oldest of five children, Vicky Zien watched her hard-working single mother provide a life for herself and her family. Through her mother, an immigrant from Mexico who was a seamstress and spoke little English, Zien became acquainted with how much of a struggle it can be to access the kinds of resources and relationships that allowed others to have a more comfortable life. Her family, and other families like hers, deserved comfort, too.
“Once I was out on my own, I saw how challenging it was to take care of myself with all the financial obligations that come with independence. … I look back and wondered how my mother raised us on her own, and I think about what services could have helped her, and what services could have helped me,” says Zien, founder and president of Anvil of Hope, the nonprofit organization she started with her husband, Peter Zien, in March 2020 to help people in need with financial assistance, employment and other resources.